On November 26, 2021, the Philippine Embassy organized an art exhibit called “Kulay Pinay” at the Cultural Palace, Diplomatic Quarter, Riyadh. The exhibit was held in collaboration with the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, the Riyadh Ambassadors’ Chorale, and eight promising Filipina artists based in Riyadh. Members of the diplomatic corps, the Saudi art community, and social media influencers attended the event.
The featured Riyadh-based Filipina artists are Leslie Ann Fiestan, Chelsea Perez-Ambray, Danielle Baldono, Vianca Cabigting, Erika Cadiz, Christine Dimaculangan, Iris Yvonne Felongco, and Stefi Anne Laron.
In less than two years since the Kingdom allowed foreigners to participate in local art exhibits, these pioneering Pinays have already joined in various local and international shows, garnering attention from both local and global news outlets, and winning awards.
A total of forty-eight paintings were showcased. As part of their repertoire, the artists depicted Filipino culture and heritage; they also conveyed their appreciation for Saudi culture and tradition through their art work. A couple of the artists also conducted live painting demonstrations during the event.
In his opening remarks, Ambassador Adnan V. Alonto emphasized the purpose of cultural diplomacy, to entice public interest in Filipino art and culture, while strengthening ties between the Philippines and Saudi Arabia.
The Embassy’s art exhibition was one of the major cultural events held in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is part of a series of cultural diplomacy activities initiated by the Embassy to present Filipino workers as artists and provide them suitable platforms to share their art and voice to uplift the image of the Philippines and Filipinos in the Kingdom.
